RESUMO
Nicotine exposure during pregnancy is linked to multiple obstetrical, fetal, and developmental complications. Parsley (Petroselinum crispum) is an aromatic herb, which has well-known potent anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative effects. The purpose of this study was to investigate, for the first time, the protective effect of parsley extract on alveolar stage of lung development in rats exposed to perinatal nicotine. Thirty Sprague-Dawley adult female rats were randomly divided into five main groups after being pregnant: control, sham control, parsley-treated (5mg /kg/day), nicotine-treated group (1mg /kg/day), and protected (nicotine + parsley extract) groups. Nicotine was injected subcutaneously, while parsley extract was given orally by gastric tube from the 7th day of pregnancy until the 21st day postnatally. At the end of the experiment, lungs of 21-day-old male offspring were subjected to biochemical, histological, and immuno-histochemical analyses. Our results revealed toxic effects of nicotine on alveolar stage of rat lung development. These were indicated by histopathological alterations, including poorly developed primary and secondary septa; interstitial tissue infiltration with inflammatory cells, atypical features appeared in some cells of bronchioles and blood vessels. In addition, a reduction in elastic fibers contents and in alpha smooth muscle expression, an increase in surfactant protein B expression, and changes of oxidative stress indices and tumor necrosis factor alpha level in lung tissue were detected. Co-administration of parsley extract ameliorated nicotine induced toxic alterations on the development of the lung. Therefore, parsley can be a promising candidate for the prevention of nicotine-induced toxicity in the developing lung
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